The NFL’s show must go on, global pandemic or not

The NFL have powered through with their offseason program as normal while other sports all over the world continue to be stuck in neutral

The NFL Draft was completed as scheduled in April (AP)

The NFL continues to keep on carrying on while all around them remain firmly stuck in a seemingly never-ending coronavirus hiatus.

America’s favourite sport has taken on Covid-19 head on and, for the most part, has won seeing its offseason program go off without a hitch.

The annual scouting combine was run in full in Indianapolis back in February just prior to the pandemic hitting before free agency and the official start of the new league year took place completely as planned in March.

Then last month’s draft was conducted and completed as usual, albeit entirely virtually, as the league continued to fly in the face of most sports who have been left powerless amidst a pandemic wreaking havoc with industries all over.

Now they have pushed on once more with Thursday evening’s release of the 2020 season schedule, where the order and timings of the games are confirmed, the latest calendar tentpole to be ticked off.

As is traditional the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs will open the new campaign when they welcome the Houston Texans to Arrowhead on Thursday September 10 in a rematch of a wild Divisional Round play-off meeting back in January.

The Chiefs will then travel to Lamar Jackson’s Baltimore Ravens in week three in another early highlight while Tom Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be part of a league-high five prime time TV games with the GOAT still proving he has plenty of pulling power even after his exit from the New England Patriots over the winter.

But the most important aspect of the big schedule reveal is undoubtedly that there is one at all.

While most sports ponder just how and when and in what form they will return to the field the NFL continues to plough on undeterred.

That’s not to say they are being reckless, of course. All safety protocols have been adhered to and will continue to be so. Indeed, the league’s one concession thus far, the decision to move all five of this season’s planned international games back to the United States from London and Mexico City, was made on safety grounds.

“This is the schedule,” NFL executive vice-president of football operations Troy Vincent said upon the official reveal. “We’re excited about this schedule. We do our proper contingency planning but no, there is no other schedule.”

Privately it has been suggested that the Super Bowl – set for Tampa in February – could move, while other mainstays like bye weeks could be shifted or removed altogether should the coronavirus and the effects of it still be lingering when it comes time for the big kick-off in the autumn.

But on the whole the NFL remain unmoved. “This is the schedule” after all. The show must go on, global pandemic or not.